Many products, such as glue, toothpaste, shaving lotion, condiments, and the like, are packaged in dispensing containers, such as squeeze containers or the like. As indicated in FIGS. 1-3, such containers generally include a body B in which the material M is stored, a cap C which is releasably mounted on the container body by various means, such as a threaded connection T, a snap fit S or a friction fit F, or the like.
The inventor has observed that while such containers are quite convenient, they have several drawbacks. For example, the cap C must be removed in order to dispense the product M from the container. This cap often becomes lost or misplaced while the container is in use, or if the user forgets to replace the cap after use. If the container is not properly re-sealed, the product can dry out or degrade during storage.
While the art contains disclosures of caps which are tethered to a container body, such tethers often are cumbersome or inconvenient to use, and may interfere with the use of the product in some circumstances. Still further, tethering may make the container or the cap more expensive to manufacture than a non-tethered container/cap combination.
Still further, many product containers are of the refillable type and the tethering may wear out. Many users have such containers and such containers are quite useful, except for the cap being loose. Such containers should not be discarded merely for the reason that they do not have a cap or have a cap that can become lost.
Therefore, there is a need for a means to maintain a container cap together with a container, and which can be used in conjunction with containers which have no means for attaching a cap to the container body, and which can be retrofit onto existing containers.